Dressed To Chill

August 28, 1994

Penguins are unusual birds. They have wings and feathers but they cannot fly. Instead, the swim. And swim gracefully. They spend more than half their lives in the water. The head of the penguin gamily is the Emperor. This bird stands 4 feet tall and Weighs 90 pounds. The Emperor is the only penguin able to survive the harsh winters of Antarctica.

In March, winter darkens Antarctica, temperatures drop to 70 degrees below zero and winds blow more than 120 miles per hour. Yet Emperor penguins choose this time to mate and raise their young.

Emperors do not eat during ther six-week courtship. The female penguin then undergoes a 63-day gestation period before laying a single egg. In May, the female leaves the egg to feed. While the female is away, the male incubates the egg by resting it on his feet underneath a protective fold of skin.

Two months later, the mothers return to see chicks hatching. Each father transfers the newborn from his brood pouch to the mother's. Now the male Emperors feed. During its fast the average male has lost more than one-third of his body weight.

The baby Emperors

During the chick's first seven weeks, the parents take turns feeding it. The paretns travel miles to fill up on squid, small fish and krill. They partially digest and regurgitate this food for the chick.

After 45 days, the chick becomes too large for the brood pouch and joins other young in a large group called a creche.

A parent foraging for food might leave the chick for up to 20 days. Later, the parent locates the young chick with a special call.

When chicks reach five months, they are left to fend for themselves. Then, hundreds of chicks will head to sea together. The parents will no longer care for their young and the sea will become their home until it is time to breed again.

Keeping warm

The Emperor's coat has a double layer of long, dense feathers. Deposits of fat beneath the skin provide insulation.

Emperor penguins congregate in rookeries of about 400,000. They huddle together and take turns warming up in the middle of the mass.

Kinds of penguins

There are 17 kinds of penguins. Seven types are represented below.

Little: 1 foot, 4 inches.

Rockhopper: 2 feet, 1 inch

Magellanic: 2 feet, 1 inch

Chinstrap: 2 feet, 6 inches

Gentoo: 2 feet, 6 inches

King: 3 feet

Emperor: 4 feet

Elegant swimmers

A penguin cannot fly because it is too heavy and its wings are too small. It is, however, as agile swimming through the water as other birds are at flying through the air.

Penguins in Florida

Sea World in Orlando as Penguin Encounter. The exhibit has more than 200 penguins in a natural setting. Penguin Encounter changes seasons as it would in nature; it actually shows. King, Rockhopper, Gentoo, Magellanic and Chinstrap penguins are on display in a tank that allows viewing from above and below the surface of the water. for more information, call (407) 363-2613.

Where they live

All penguins live south of the equator in the area of oceans that are cooled by Antarctic sea currents. The birds live in warm and cold climates and breed on islands and coastal area of continents.

Emperors are the only penguins that live solely on Antarctica. Other species cannot withstand the harsh winters.